Maria Vasquez (Earth-616)
; formerly | Relatives = unnamed father (deceased); unnamed sister (deceased) | Universe = Earth-616 | BaseOfOperations = Mobile | Gender = Female | Height = 5'9" | Weight = 133 lbs | Eyes = Brown | Hair = Black | Hair2 = with dyed red streak | UnusualFeatures = | CharRef = | Citizenship = American | Occupation = Adventurer | Origin = Human | PlaceOfBirth = | Creators = Justin Gray; Jimmy Palmiotti | First = Heroes for Hire Vol 2 1 | Last = | HistoryText = Maria Vasquez decided to become a hero to avenge her sister, who had been killed in the Stamford Incident. This was against the wishes of her father, who would have preferred that she found a safer profession (such as a doctor or a lawyer) and where she could put her intelligence to good use. Her father was killed by ninjas while visiting her sister's grave when she had been the one marked for death by Ricadonna (along with the rest of the Heroes For Hire). Tarantula killed the entire team of ninjas herself. The team went to Savage Land to explore some things that SHIELD wanted Tarantula and her team to find. On their return, SHIELD refused to pay them before they solved their problem with the Hulk. Tarantula got into an argument with SHIELD agent Scorpion which raised some tension between the two teams. Secret Empire After Steve Rogers revealed himself to be a Hydra sleeper agent and overthrew the United States of America to establish a Hydra Empire, Tarantula joined the Underground. | Personality = Maria Vasquez has a bad attitude. She enjoys inflicting pain and once licked her bloody blade after slicing through an enemy. If instructed not to kill, she will seriously injure an opponent, to the chagrin of her teammates. | Powers = | Abilities = Master Martial Artist: Tarantula is highly skilled in Martial Arts and hand to hand combat. She is skilled in using the blades on her wrists and the toes of her boots as very effective weapons. High Intelligence: Maria has also been shown to be highly intelligent with knowledge of biology and engineering. Detective Skill: Tarantula is a skilled detective, capable of observation, forensic investigation, and inductive and deductive reasoning of the highest caliber. Interrogation Expert Expert Marksman: She is an exceptional marksman.She is skilled in sharpshooting and knife throwing. | Strength = Tarantula possesses the normal human strength of a woman of her age, height, and build who engages in intensive regular exercise. | Equipment = | Transportation = | Weapons = Blades on her wrists and the toes of her boots. | Notes = | Trivia = * Her sister was killed in the Stamford explosion. Her father was killed while visiting her sister's grave. * She possesses blades attached to her elbows and wrists. Whether these are biological, mechanical, or merely attached weapons is unrevealed. * She shared a very passionate kiss with fellow teammate, Shang-Chi, but they have ignored each other since. | Links = }} Category:50-State Initiative members Category:Shooting Category:Weapons Expert Category:Martial Arts